On Wednesday, he tapped Cleveland Indians director of Latin American scouting Koby Perez to serve as senior director of international scouting, which Elias called the “first major step in improving our footing in Latin America.

“In Koby Perez, we have found the right person to spearhead the Orioles’ new international presence,” Elias said in a statement. “His experience, connections, and reputation built across a fast-rising career in multiple successful organizations will immediately elevate our capabilities in this critical market.

“We will continue to augment our operation until the Baltimore Orioles are leaders in recruiting and developing international players.”

Perez, a former Red Sox farmhand from 2002-2003, first crossed paths with Elias and assistant general manager for analytics Sig Mejdal when he joined the St. Louis Cardinals as an area scout in 2006. He left to join the Philadelphia Phillies’ Latin American scouting staff in 2009 and spent five years there, working on the signings of infielder Maikel Franco, outfielder Domingo Santana, and pitchers Seranthony Dominguez and Hector Neris, among others.

Most recently, Perez was the director of Latin American scouting for the Indians, a role he assumed in January 2016 and that saw him guide the team’s scouting in that area. For two years prior, he was the Indians’ international crosschecker.

Perez takes over an international scouting department that hasn’t had a formal leader since Fred Ferreria wasn’t brought back after the 2017 season. Assistant director of minor league and international operations Cale Cox, who was dismissed in October, played a significant role in the team’s return to the market this summer, with nearly $1 million in bonus money spent.

But they only really got back into the international signing game this year, with most of the available money in the organization going to a major league payroll recently despite the skill of former executive vice president Dan Duquette in signing foreign amateur talent at his other stops. No one in their current top-30 prospect list on Baseball America was an amateur free agent signed from Latin America; Australian left-hander Alex Wells is the only homegrown international player on the list.